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While mindlessly procrastinating on Facebook the other day, I found this repulsive image:

For me, it was a huge slap in face. Yet the meme trended on Instagram and Facebook and had over 3,000 shares.

People praised its “truthfulness” and talked about how young Black women need to take a lesson from women of the past. While I don’t disagreethat we should know our history, the execution of this message was poor. The meme makes four ridiculously flawed assumptions about today’s Black women.

Assumption #1: Twerking is the evilest thing in the world*

The discussion on twerking is an interesting one and I’m on the fence. But for now I’ll say this: there’s nothing inherently wrong with twerking. It’s a dance that requires skill and technique.

Yes, it’s sexual—so is tango, which has origins related to prostitution. So was the Can-can when it first came out. Even the belly dance and African dance classes I took as a child can be viewed as sexual when taken out of context. In the past, these dances were frowned upon because they originated from marginalized groups. The views of dances like tango and twerking are often directly related to the privileged classes’ views of the working class and/or ethnic groups.

Also, we should watch the way we police women’s creative expression—it’s not a crime to be sexual.

On the other hand, the train may not have been the best place to initiate a twerking session—though it wasn’t harming anyone on the train (except maybe the other black women who were worried about being lumped into one massive stereotype, which happens whether people twerk on trains or not).

Assumption #2: Black women are the same

I think it’s safe to assume that not all Black women twerk on trains. I know I’m not that bold. Not all Black women even know how to twerk (sorry to burst your bubble).

Yet, the way Black women are portrayed in media is the way people, including other Black people, view us as a whole. And the fact that this meme got praise from tons of Black folks shows the media’s negative effect on our own views of our culture.

Quit buying into the nonsense that all black women act a certain way and start looking into media that celebrates the successful ventures of Black women today. Try Clutch Magazine to begin with. They have a whole section called “She’s So Ambitious,” which highlights successes of Black woman entrepreneurs.

The meme completely invalidates the work of the many women I mentioned above, and all the others who like them. Most of those women are fighting for the similar cause of equality that the women in the 1960’s did.

I love the philosophy of one of my cousins and her friends, who refer to themselves as “Sophistiratch” because they have a lot of fun and do things that people may deem “ratchet,” while at the same time, they all have degrees and are pursuingcareers.

All in all, viewing this meme’s portrayal of Black women as authentic makes you no better than Lily Allen—who views us as twerking objects to be smacked on the butt, mocked for our bodies, and then shamed for our behavior (yet, never applauded for our accomplishments).

When I tried to find memes for this post, I couldn’t find any “Educated Black Woman” or “Successful Black Woman” memes. Of course, “Ghetto Black Girl” and “Stereotypical Black Girl” were readily available. So here’s one I created:

Feel free to share it. In the future I hope there are more positive memes for Black women and that these horrific ones cease to spread.

*Yes, my views on twerking have changed since I’ve done more research on respectability politics as it relates to race. While I stand by my argument in Sorority Girls must Twerk, people shouldn’t assume that women twerk because of the oppressive demands of us to embody sexual objects. People twerk because they are having a good time or celebrating, among other reasons.

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Excellent article with many thought-provoking points! I’m so tired of the lack of “edutainment” blogs concerning the positive contributions among us black women except the ones noted in the article (Clutch, etc.) Beyond that, there’s really not much else out there except for ratchet MTO…ugh…

As a new fan to this intelligent, funny and well-written site, I definitely expect to become a regular reader!

Who cares? Go bitch about something more important maybe if you taught your African American daughters better you wouldn’t be writing this article. Now excuse me while I post these on my Facebook page. Lelelel

To me it’s that willie lynch sh**, you don’t see white people posting stuff about redneck whites, or serial killers, or college rapists….why because they don’t let the actions of other whites define them….I understand why blacks do, and it’s to gain acceptance from whites…because black is a lower social construct….it’s just like women blaming other women for messing it up for all women. It’s all thanks to Racism/white superiority and sexism in America.

Reblogged this on blvckcocaine2013 and commented:
I totally agree. I did a similar post to this concerning memes that use the term “bitch” loosely. Those memes usually feature black women and degrading stereotypes about them. These IG, Twitter, and Tumblr picture jokes must stop!

[…] of black womanhood. We all have our own various ways of expressing ourselves that go far beyond “respectable vs. ratchet.” Some of us are both and/or neither. We need a diverse range of expressions, as that gives more […]

[…] This Week’s Most Offensive Internet Meme “There’s a reason you haven’t heard much about the ambitious Black women of 2013. Women like Moya Bailey, Tatyana Fazlalizadeh, Melissa Harris-Perry, and Sil Lai Abrams aren’t trending on reality TV, Vine, Worldstar, and Youtube because they don’t fit certain stereotypes. Kanye isn’t going to feature those women in his music videos and Tyler Perry will write them in his script as heartless bitches simply because they are powerful.” […]